


Unfairly Exposed

by chvotic



Series: Irondad NSAP [3]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Baby Peter Parker, Bullying, Classification AU, Crying, Diapers, Domestic Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Father-Son Relationship, Flash Thompson Being A Jerk, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Infantilism, Little Peter, NOT STARKER - Freeform, Nicknames, Non-Sexual Age Play, Pacifiers, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Relationships, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Post-Spider-Man: Homecoming, Swearing, Thor (Marvel) is a Good Bro, Thumb-sucking, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, caregiver tony stark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-09
Updated: 2020-09-09
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:01:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26369134
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chvotic/pseuds/chvotic
Summary: "You don't know, do you, Penis?""Know what?" Peter snapped, looking at Ned for an explanation. At the same time Ned bowed his head, and MJ had appeared with wide but pitiful eyes. Now Peter wasreallyconfused. "What?"OrThanks to a leak in the media, Peter's classification is exposed to the world.
Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: Irondad NSAP [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1903627
Comments: 12
Kudos: 410





	Unfairly Exposed

**Author's Note:**

> **this is not related to the previous two fics in this series! different universe.**
> 
> this has been sitting in my drafts since late 2018, so its about time i posted it since i've received good feedback on my nsap fics so far... i was worried
> 
> enjoy!
> 
> **not st*rker**

Peter wanted to die.

Walking through the corridors of his school that day, there had been nothing out of the ordinary. Everything had been fine. In fact, he had been happy. 

He had been Little for the whole weekend, which had been a relief from the multiples tests he'd had, along with Flash and his usual torments. Friday night, he'd had a meltdown as soon as he'd gotten into Happy's car, and if it had been any other situation Peter would have laughed at the look on the man's face. However, he was far too emotionally and physically drained to do nothing but cry.

He'd dropped right there in the car after holding back all day.

Finally, he had been able to let go despite how much being a Little still embarrassed him, but his mind had felt so free.

So, he was in a good mood Monday morning. 

That was until he realised everyone was, in fact, staring at him, and Ned was coming up to him with a white, panic-stricken face. Peter sent him a questioning glance, nervously squeezing his backpack straps as he tried not to pay attention to all the stares on him. He hated all the attention, and not knowing why everyone was looking at him made him feel even more anxious.

At first, he hadn't noticed the eyes on him, the laughs that followed him around the school as he made his way to his locker. He hadn't noticed first because he had been in such a good mood, ready to start a new week and forget about the last.

The first thing he thought was, _had they found out about Spider-Man?_

Peter could very well listen to the hushed whispers and conversations with his sensitive hearing, though he found he didn't want to. If they found out about Spider-Man, he didn't want to know what hey were thinking. So, instead of eavesdropping, Peter looked to his best friend for answers.

"What's going on?" Peter asked when Ned reached him. Ned's face was still that pasty white colour, and his eyes were raking Peter's body up and down as if he had never seen Peter before. This just increased the teen's nerves, his stomach doing cartwheels as he impatiently waited for Ned to reply. "Ned?"

"Um-" Ned stuttered, eyes dancing around the crowd of teenagers looking at him as if he had no idea what to say.

"N-"

"Oh, if it isn't the baby!" Flash's voice interrupted Peter, who turned to look at his bully with the most emotionless facial expression he could muster. 

Already, his carefree and relaxed mood had disappeared, and all he wanted was to go home and be cuddled by his Daddy. 

_Wait._ No. He wasn't little right now, and Tony had a lot work to do since he had been looking after Peter all weekend. Peter had to be here at school. He had literally just been little, he shouldn't want to or need to again, and he couldn't miss anymore days of school because fo it.

Being a Little, he probably shouldn't even be in this section of the school. He had gotten tested outside of school by highly trained SHIELD agents thanks to Tony, since May had gone behind his back and expressed her concerns about his classification. It was all in good intentions, but Peter felt as though he hadn't been given a choice. However, he was grateful May had talked to Tony, because it saved Peter from doing it himself.

May knew that Peter would want to stay with Ned and MJ. Both May and Peter knew what classification he was going to be, so telling Tony appeared to be something essential. From there, Peter was classified at the Compound, and soon enough Tony became his main Caregiver.

In all schools there was a section for Littles. Peter knew how they worked, he'd done so much research. Depending on headspace ages, there were various naps and snack breaks during the day, even _playtime_. Despite how much the idea appealed to Peter's Little side, he couldn't afford to have Flash or the rest of the school knowing his classification. Not even the staff knew, much to May and Tony's disagreement. Everyone was under the impression that he was a Neutral.

Peter was brought back into the present by Flash's whiny voice. Being called a baby by Flash wasn't a new insult, but today it seemed to have a little more spite attached to it. 

"Do you need your bottle?" Flash taunted, sticking his thumb into his mouth and began sucking on it noisily and obnoxiously. Peter's senses tingled in the back of his mind, almost groaning when he had to force himself not to react as Flash reached forwards and wiped his wet thumb down Peter's cheek as if he were caressing it. What the fuck? "Or does your Daddy do that for you?"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Peter asked, and at that precise moment, his phone began ringing in his pocket with that specific ring tone. Tony's ringtone. He forced himself to ignore it, staring at Flash as he waited for an answer. Flash seemed to hear his phone, eyebrow jutted upwards for a few moments. " _What?_ "

Flash's eyes widened as if he couldn't believe it, a sickening, all-teeth smile appearing on his face. He looked like a shark.

"You don't know, do you, Penis?"

"Know what?" Peter snapped, looking at Ned for an explanation. At the same time Ned bowed his head, and MJ had appeared with wide but pitiful eyes. Now Peter was really confused. "What?"

One of Flash's friends appeared beside him, phone outstretched in Peter's face within seconds.

What Peter saw on there was something he never, ever, wanted to see again.

It was of him, in the Littles section of a store Tony. Peter gaped at the picture, forehead and underarms beginning to sweat as he took in what he was really seeing. Laughter erupted around him, shame beginning to make its way into his mind as he tried to figure out how they had possibly have gotten that fucking photo, who could have possibly taken it, and how they had gotten so close to them without any of them noticing.

When Tony and Peter went out, it was under enormous secrecy. The picture had been from the weekend, because he and Tony had gone out to buy some new stuff for Peter's room. In the picture, it was easy to tell that it was him. In his hands was his baby blanket, and in his mouth was his favourite Iron Man pacifier. It was so obviously him that he almost vomited right there.

The store they were at was one they visited regularly. The staff there had been sworn to secrecy with all kinds of NDAs, but one of them had to have broken that. There had been no one else in the store, there never was when Tony and Peter were there, so it had to have been one of the staff.

Peter's phone began to blare loudly again with the same ringtone, which meant that Tony knew what had happened too. 

"You shouldn't be here, you stupid _baby_. You should be in the... the _Little's_ section of the school. Ugh, gross. I bet you wear a diaper and everything! Are you wearing one right now?" Flash sneered, Peter's senses tingling again when Flash moved forwards to push him. Peter let himself stumble, not really on purpose, as the image seared itself into his mind. "Get out of here, Penis!"

The worst part was, was that he was wearing a thin pull-up underneath his jeans, made specifically by Tony so they didn't puff out of his pants and weren't obvious at all.

He had, of course, fallen into the category of _horrible control of bodily functions when both in and out of headspace._

Peter hunched into himself, feeling the cusp of his headspace beginning to catch up to him as he pushed past Flash. Ned and MJ trailed behind him, trying to talk to him, but he ignored their attempts and shoved passed everyone who was in his way. 

Once he made it, he made a beeline for his desk and sat down. He hunched over it and buried his face in his arms, trying not to scream, or maybe cry, out of frustration and humiliation. His phone rang for a third time, and this time he brought it out to actually answer Tony.

Before he could, his phone was snatched out of his hand by the teacher without a word, and was soon taken to the front of the room. Which was unfair, because class hadn't even started yet. He opened his mouth to complain, but he knew it would come out childish thanks to how close he now was to dropping again.

By the look on her face, it seemed she knew what had happened, too. She looked sympathetic, but why would she take his phone when there was an image of him circulating the around the school?

Peter could have fallen into his headspace and bawled right then and there. He buried his face back in his arms as he waited for class to start, hearing the sniggers and whispers when more students entered the room thanks to his senses. His entire body was trembling, his thumb inching towards his mouth and that image was still right there in his mind.

He couldn't get the image out of his head. It was clear the whole school recognised it was him in the picture, there was no way anyone in the school didn't know by now. Hell, the whole world probably knew that he was Tony's Little now. 

Peter tried to comfort himself by saying _hey, at least they don't know you're Spider-Man_ , but at this point, this was so much worse. Peter would rather receive insults about his secret identity in comparison with being a Little. Now, if the world ever did find out he was Spider-Man, the criticism was bound to be ten times worse.

_A Little couldn't be Spider-Man._

He could only imagine how much worse that would be, and that only added onto his stress. Peter couldn't imagine what the rest of the media was doing and saying right now.

"Dude.." Ned whispered, a hand resting on his shoulder. Peter flinched, but Ned didn't pull his hand away. "I don't think you should be here. I read that stress can send Little's into their h-"

"No." Peter snapped, before he shrugged Ned off. He could not handle talking about this right now. "No."

"He's right, Peter." MJ said, her voice so soft he almost hurtled into his headspace. Peter had never heard her sound so gentle before. "We don't judge you. We never would, we kind of thought you were already."

"Yeah. We don't care. We love you." 

Peter wanted to break. Both his friends sounded so sincere the dam almost shattered, but he managed to hold the emotions in and keep ahold of his teen headspace. He didn't answer them, knowing that if he did he'd more than likely burst into tears. Instead, he huddled deeper into his arms as class started.

"Parker." His teacher called, tone shrill and loud. Peter jolted a little from fright. "Sit up right now."

Peter did as he was told with a small scowl, however the scowl was merely a mask to cover the panic. His peers around him sniggered and laughed quietly, and even though he was looking straight ahead, he could feel the eyes on him. His eyes welled up, but he ignored it and pretended like he was giving his upmost attention to the content his teacher was giving him.

Eventually, Peter found himself slumped down again, head in his arms.

Predictably, he was told again to sit up properly. At the same time he sat back up, there was a knock on the door. Peter felt himself pale when he saw Principal Morita enter the room, eyes zoning in on him within seconds. A sympathetic gaze appeared on the man's face as he headed over to his teacher.

"May I take Peter Parker for a moment?" The man said quietly, quietly enough that Peter wouldn't hear unless he used his super hearing. 

"Yes, of course." Was the just as quiet reply.

Principal Morita turned to the class. "Peter, can you please come with me to my office?"

Just in that precise moment, Peter's phone began to blare, and his Chemistry teacher seemed completely done with it as she yanked it into her view, Peter watching as her face paled.

"It says Tony Stark is calling." She just had to tell the whole classroom, the students bursting into giggles and snickers all over again. No one believed her, and she didn't even believe herself. But how couldn't they? They'd all seen the picture, it was obviously Tony Stark stood next to him. 

Peter knew he was done for, so he bowed his head and hunched back into himself as he stood up. He grabbed his backpack and resisted the urge to stick his thumb in his mouth as his Principal set a gentle hand on his shoulder. The man handed Peter his phone and lead him out of the room without another word.

When he sat down in the office, his hand had instinctively gone to his mouth, thumb prodding at his lower lip. Principal Morita seemed to notice this, a saddened look passing over his face as he leant on both of his elbows and made eye contact with him.

"Mr. Parker, I understand that an... image is being spread around the school and the internet at the moment."

"Yes." Peter whispered, trying to stop his hand from shaking. By now, he knew that Tony would be on his way. It was only a matter of time.

"Now, I understand that you did not take your classification test among the rest of the students. I, and the rest of the staff here, were unaware that your classification was not Neutral as we had been told." His Principal began, sighing and rubbing the bridge of his nose. "I assume that might have something to do with your Caregiver. But usually, the Littles are treated a little different to the other Classifications. I'm sure you would know that."

Peter nodded, feeling his eyes beginning to burn. 

He was humiliated.

"Now, I am sure you are very capable of being in this part of Midtown. You have proven that." Peter's heart stopped. "But if needed, you are allowed to move to the Little's section. Things are a lot more carefree there, and you will be looked after and taught all of the same things you are being taught now. Many of our students who are classified Little use this section, and it appears to be very beneficial to their health and mental stability. It can also be temporary, if that is what you wish. It is possible to switch between both. I understand your Caregiver is... Tony Stark?"

Peter didn't say anything. He just sat there, staring at his shoes, trying not to let his headspace take over because of the intense stress and embarrassment he was feeling.

"I am sorry this happened to you, Peter."

Peter still didn't answer, now staring at his watch, knowing Tony would be tracking it right this very moment.

"Would you like me to call someone, Peter?" Principal Morita's tone had turned soft, and he could hear the man getting out of his seat. Peter couldn't help but let a few tears slip when the man kneeled in front of him, as if he had done this many times before. It hit Peter then that maybe his Principal could have been a Caregiver, because he sure gave off that vibe. He wasn't sure how he hadn't noticed before. "It will pass. Who would you like me to call?"

"Da-" Peter stopped himself. "Tony."

"Okay." Principal Morita smiled slightly before returning to his desk, looking at something on his computer. "Do you have his number?"

Peter listed the numbers off by heart, but there was no use. Peter could hear Tony before he saw him. He could hear the thrusters of the Iron Man suit outside as he landed, and then the mechanical sounds as he walked, or rather ran, down the corridors. He could hear the shocked and excited exclaims of kids in classrooms soon after that.

On a normal day, Peter would have been horrified by Tony's dramatic entrance. However, today, he just wanted his Daddy to come save him.

Peter was relieved when said Iron Man suit barged into the room, making the two occupants jump in surprise. Peter realised he was reaching out without even thinking about it, recoiling with a frustrated whine as he buried his face in his hands. He had been okay that morning, he had a handle of his big headspace after a whole weekend of being Little. But now, he felt like he was going to drop any second.

He could hear Tony getting out of the suit, almost falling off his chair in relief when the man's voice filled his ears. "Peter? Petey, hey. It's me. Tony."

Tony was kneeling in front of him, holding his hands, trying to catch Peter's eye.

Involuntarily, Peter brokenly whimpered. 

"D-Daddy." 

"Oh, shit." He heard Tony mumble frantically, one had leaving Peter's to move under his chin. "Hey, baby. It's okay. We're going to get you home, yeah?"

"Yeah." Peter echod softly, letting Tony help him up with hands under his armpits. He would have preferred to have been carried, but with all the people in such close vicinity... the only other people that Peter had been Little in front of was Tony, the Avengers and May. He was wobbly on his feet, melting into Tony when the man pulled him into a hug. "Bad."

"You haven't been bad, this isn't your fault." Tony whispered, rubbing his back. "The picture came out after Happy dropped you off."

"Home now." Peter mumbled, not being able to stop himself from burying his face in Tony's collarbone.

"Yeah. We're going home now." Tony replied, before gently pushing him away. "You gotta walk by yourself, alright? Happy's brought the car, can you hold on for that long, kiddie?"

Peter nodded wordlessly, Tony's arms around his shoulders despite his words as the Iron Man suit began to be in the control of FRIDAY. Peter hovered by his mentor's side as he spoke to the principal, and soon, the Iron Man suit was guiding the way throughout the school hallways. Peter could hear and see kids standing by the windows and peering out, along with the teacher's yelling at them to get back to their seats.

Peter curled into himself when Tony gently pushed him into the car, immediately shoving his thumb in his mouth as he hid his face from Happy. He had seen the man's concerned gaze in the mirror, and that was enough to send him deeper into his headspace than ever before. 

He leaned into Tony when the man sat beside him, letting the man buckle his seatbelt and wrap his arm around his shoulders. Peter could feel himself slipping the further they got from his school, straining to keep the tears at bay. Tony rubbed his arm, kissed the top of his head, whispered things in his ear the whole time.

Peter sucked on his thumb despite knowing Tony hated when he did it, closing his eyes as he tried not to slip too far before they got home. He let out an agitated whine when his thumb was pulled away, only for it to be replaced with the familiar silicone nipple of a pacifier he was so used to. He immediately rolled it under his tongue, relishing in the comfort, wondering where Tony had gotten it from.

"Whoever took that picture is dead."

"Have you figured out who took the picture, Boss?" Happy spoke up, Peter opening his bleary eyes to look around the car. He sucked absently on the pacifier, beginning to feel a little sick from the movement of the car and the nerves he was still feeling, his hand moving to grip onto some of Tony's shirt.

"Pepper's on it. It had to have been one of the staff, there was no one else in the building. We made sure of that." Tony replied, a sigh leaving his mouth after as he rested is chin on top of Peter's head. "I can't fu- freaking believe one of them took a picture of a minor without consent, especially after all the shit we went through to make sure it was safe."

"I know, Tony." Happy replied, Peter meeting his eyes in the mirror. "Pep'll get to the bottom of it."

"She better." Tony mumbled, pressing another kiss to Peter's head. "Are you okay, bubba?"

Peter shook his head, finding it harder and harder to keep ahold of his tears as he pressed deeper into Tony's side, sucking desperately on the pacifier to control his emotions. He felt Tony let out another sigh, this one shakier now, the man running his hand through Peter's curls and then resumed rubbing his arm.

Peter somehow managed to keep his tears in and big headspace intact the entire ride to the Compound, grateful when Tony picked him up out of the car and secured him in his arms. Peter closed his eyes and rested his head on Tony's shoulder, still sucking on the pacifier as Tony began walking in the direction of the lift. His heart was pounding in his ears, the panic he was feeling sending him closer and closer to falling into his headspace. He had a distinct feeling that he would be littler than he had the entire weekend.

Tony, on the other hand, was livid. He held his kid in his arms as he stepped into the lift, feeling the rhythmic suckling of the pacifier against his neck as he did so. He squeezed Peter tight, rocking him as Happy stepped into the lift with them. Happy looked as sad as Tony felt. 

He could not believe that one of those fuckers had somehow gotten a picture of Peter and himself the store, when it was meant to be a private trip. They had exploited Peter to the entire media, and the picture was good enough quality that Peter's face was easily recognisable. Anyone Peter knew would be able to tell that it was him, and that was the last thing that Tony wanted. Peter had made it clear to him that he wanted his classification a secret, much like his identity as Spider-Man. Even _more_ than Spider-Man.

How could he have let this happen? How hadn't he noticed?

He could tell by how tense Peter was that he was on the cusp of his headspace. Tony knew that the chances of Peter not slipping was near zero, and he had no idea how young the kid was going to be. He always usually ranged from under one to just about three, and he always tended to go smaller when he was under a large amount of stress. Which, of course, he was under a huge amount right now.

They had a good, relaxing weekend because they had both needed it, and Peter had left the Compound all smiles. But now, he was going right back to where they had been just the day before, far earlier than anyone would have expected.

So, in order to quicken and make the process of slipping a little more comforting for Peter, he continued gently rocking side to side as the lift ascended, humming lowly under his breath. They were soon alone in the lift when Happy stepped out, humming a little louder when his friend wasn't around to hear him. He could feel Peter's body relaxing, Tony not really sure if that was with sleep or being eased into his headspace, smiling gently at the kid when he peeked out of his shoulder.

Peter's eyes swam with unshed tears, Tony's heart breaking at the sad look on his child's face. He hadn't slipped yet, but he was well on his way.

"What do you say, Petey? How's 'bout we watch some movies and cuddle?" He smiled gently when Peter nodded, leaning forward to kiss the kid's nose. He didn't earn a giggle like he usually would, but a little light shone in Peter's eyes from the gesture. "Sounds good to me, baby."

The lift doors opened at that moment, revealing Tony's, and by extension, Peter's living quarters. Tony made a beeline for Peter's bedroom, which was both a normal teen room and a nursery mixed together. Tony headed into the ensuite that connected onto the room, laying Peter down onto the changing table and rested his hand on the kid's stomach for a few moments. He quickly popped back into the bedroom, grabbing the first onsie he saw in the clean laundry pile that Pepper must have left for him.

Peter had a little bit of a glazed look in his eyes when Tony returned, letting the older of the two know immediately where Peter's mental state was at. He worked quickly, ridding Peter of his day clothes. Before Tony could take the pull up off and replace it with a diaper, Peter burst into tears, shaking his head and pulling at Tony's hands.

Tony's heart broke, tears filling his eyes as he caressed his baby's face, shushing him. "Bubba, it's okay. There's no windows. We're safe, honey. Here, why don't I shut the door?"

Peter watched him as he did so, hiccuping, seeming to relax once the door was closed. Tony regained his composure, organising his supplies, getting ready to take the pull up off.

Peter sucked almost violently on the pacifier when Tony began the process, as if he were panicking. Tony paused, holding Peter's hand gently in his own, bringing it up to kiss his knuckles. "Baby, no one can see us. I promise. I won't let that happen again. I'm so, so sorry."

The boy shook his head, hiccuping again, using his other hand to reach up for Tony. Tony's heart broke, gently declining, cringing at the broken sob that left his kid's mouth.

"Let me change you first, bub." Tony whispered, quickly continuing. He tried to be as quick as possible, trying not to burst into tears himself as Peter cried throughout the entire process. When Tony finally got the diaper and onsie on, Tony accepted Peter's grabby hands and brought him into a tight hug. "Shh, shh. It's okay."

He carried Peter around the nursery, grabbing the boy's baby blanket and favourite teddy bear. Peter latched onto both items, which seemed to help the kid calm down a little as his sobs began to slow. He hiccuped every now and then, seeming content to let Tony carry him around the floor as he grabbed multiple things that were guaranteed to make Peter feel a little better.

Tony made a warm bottle next, then grabbed a small container of blueberries just in case Peter was still hungry. Instead of the living room, Tony brought Peter into his own room so they would be more comfortable and warm. Once Peter was snuggled up in the blankets and comfortably resting his head on Tony's chest, he began to speak.

"What movie are we feeling today, hm?" Tony questioned, brushing Peter's curls from his face. The boy had the bottle in his mouth, sad eyes looking at the black TV screen. It looked as if he was lost in thought. 

"Mmm." Peter hummed, then wiped his eyes. "'olt?"

"Bolt?" Tony repeated just to make sure he'd heard his kid right. When Peter nodded, Tony addressed FRIDAY. "You heard the kid."

Within seconds, Bolt had been put on the TV. Peter sighed a little, snuggling closer and finishing off the bottle in record speed. Usually, Peter would fall asleep after having one, but understandably today was different. He picked at the blueberries next, chewing on one every now and then as he watched the movie.

Tony wasn't really watching, he was more watching Peter, making sure he was prepared for whatever emotion would come out of his boy next. If Peter noticed him watching, he either didn't know or care. At least he had stopped crying for now, which Tony was glad for. He hated to see his kid cry.

About halfway through the movie, Peter fell asleep with his thumb in his mouth. Tony brushed a few curls from the boy's forehead before he grabbed a pacifier from the nightstand, quickly replacing the thumb with the pacifier before Peter could whine about it. Once Peter was settled, Tony grabbed his phone searched for Pepper's contact.

She picked up on the second ring. "Have you found who did it?"

"Yes." Pepper's reply was immediate. Her tone was cold, she was obviously angry. "It was one of the cashiers, Lydia. She tried to take off. We have her right now."

Tony scowled. 

"Go do your worst, Pep."

"You know I will." There was a short pause before Pepper continued. "How is he?"

"He's upset." Tony glanced down at Peter as he spoke. "This was the one thing he didn't want to get out. I should have been more careful, I should have been watching them closer... what are we going to do?"

"Don't blame yourself. This isn't your fault." Pepper's tone softened. "Peter will understand that. Despite how much you didn't want it to, eventually it would have come out. You also can't keep Peter locked in that Compound every time he's Little."

"I know, I just..." Tony sighed heavily. "I don't want him to be in the media like I was as a kid."

"We can make some arrangements." Pepper replied. "You could take him up to Malibu for a few days until it all blows over? You know he's always wanted to go. You could take him to the beach, and it would be private enough that no one would know. I can release a statement for you."

"That sounds... like a good idea." Tony pressed a kiss to Peter's forehead. "I just wish this happened on his terms."

"Me too. It's horrible, but he'll get through it. So will you, Tony."

"Yeah." Peter was a strong kid, there was no doubt in Tony's mind that Peter wouldn't get through it. It would just take time. "I have to let May know as soon as she's out of surgery." 

May would have no idea what was going on, since she was in a long surgery and wouldn't be out until the afternoon. Peter was planned to stay over at the Compound for another two nights, since May was being slammed with work and didn't want him at the apartment alone. Either way, Peter already spent most of his time at the Compound with Tony, so it wouldn't really be that different.

"That would be good." Pepper agreed. "I have to go now, I'll talk to you once I've had a word with... you know."

"Thanks Pep." A ghost of a smile formed on his lips as he spoke. "See you soon."

"Bye, Tony. Tell Peter I said hi."

"Of course."

Once Pepper hung up, Tony just cuddled his kid close and shut his eyes.

Somehow, against all the odds, Tony fell asleep.

-

When Tony woke up, Peter was still fast asleep at his side. Tony shifted a little, groggy as he checked the time. It had only been around two hours, and it was around the time that Peter would usually have a nap when he was Little. Tony let the boy sleep for a little longer, checking to see if there was any updates or missed calls from Pepper, but there were none. There were some from Bruce and Rhodey, though, both expressing their concerns for Peter.

He ignored them all and stared at the ceiling for a while, wondering how much this would change things.

Not long after Tony had woken up, Peter began to shift. Eventually, his brown eyes blinked open, still bleary with sleep as he sucked on his pacifier. Tony smiled down at his son, hoping there wouldn't be anymore tears.

"Hey kiddo." Tony began. "Pep called. She said hi."

"Hi Pep." Peter muttered, which made Tony chuckle. 

"How are you feeling?" Tony asked, trying to read Peter's facial expression. 

Peter just shrugged. Tony wasn't sure whether Peter was in his Little headspace or teen headspace, or if he was stuck between the two. He just smiled at the kid, who continued to suck on his pacifier. He was probably still coming out of sleep, so Tony busied himself with looking through some emails for SI.

"Daddy?" Tony was alert immediately. "Need... need change."

"Of course." It appeared that he was looking after Little Peter for the moment.

Tony got out of bed and brought Peter into his arms, making sure that the baby blanket and bear came with them as he moved across the hall into Peter's room. Peter remained quiet and compliant throughout the change, Tony a little wary of the behaviour as he did so. When Peter was back in his arms, he pressed a kiss to the boy's cheek and tried not to frown in concern.

"What's going through that head of yours?" Tony asked when he pulled back and tickled underneath Peter's chin. Peter squirmed, but he didn't giggle like he usually did, which made the frown even harder to keep off of his face. "Do you want to go down to the common room to the see the others? I'm sure they're missing you very much."

Peter had seen them that morning, but it seemed to work. The boy nodded slowly and nervously, not meeting Tony's eyes. 

"Hungry?" Peter shook his head. "Okay. Let's go."

Tony ignored the lack of response to the best of his ability as he brought Peter over to the lift, rocking him gently in the same way he had when they got home from Peter's school. Peter had his face hidden in Tony's neck, arms wrapped around his neck. 

When the doors opened, all heads turned to them within seconds. Tony shook his head in a way that hoped got the point across not to mention the picture that was being spread, and they seemed to get the message well enough. Thor was the first one to saunter over to them, face sadder than Tony had ever seen it. Ever since he came back from space, the man seemed... more reserved. He even had a hair cut and lost an eye. Bruce was different too, since apparently they'd spent time together up there while the Hulk was gone for two years. 

"Man of spiders!" Thor greeted, as he walked over. Peter peeked out from Tony's shoulder at the sound of his favourite Uncle's voice, but a smile didn't appear on his face like usual. "I have missed you in your time away."

Peter waved, and thankfully, a small smile _finally_ appeared on the boy's face.

"Do you want to go over to Uncle Thor, bub?" Tony asked Peter, who looked at him for a moment before he nodded. Thor quite happily took Peter into his arms and carried him over to the couches, where Bruce sat watching TV. Confident that Peter would be alright with them for a few minutes, Tony moved into the kitchen and headed straight for the coffee machine.

Rhodey was in the kitchen making himself a sandwich when he walked in. It was strange for Rhodey to be on the communal floor, since he mostly kept to himself on his own private floor or was out of the country. Tony couldn't return his smile as he stopped in front of the coffee machine.

"How is he?" His friend asked, voice filled with concern.

"I think he's in a bit of shock." Tony sighed as he made himself a coffee. "I wish I could make it better, but I can't. Everyone knows now."

"He'll get through it." Rhodey said the same thing as Pepper. "So will you."

"I know." Tony replied. "I just wish it didn't happen like this. I wish it could have been on his terms."

"Me too. But there's nothing we can do now." The words weren't harsh, and a smile was on Rhodey's face. "He'll be okay."

He left the kitchen after that, so Tony turned back to the coffee machine and finished making his coffee. Once it was done, he headed into the living room, not surprised to see Peter still curled up in Thor's arms as Bruce attempted to make him laugh. Peter was smiling a little, but not much. Tony felt the frown return as he sat down beside Thor and Peter. He took a small sip of his coffee and turned to observe his son.

The moment he sat down, Peter started to squirm in Thor's arms. Within seconds, Peter was half draped over Tony and Thor, mostly Tony as he snuggled into his chest. Tony barely managed to put his coffee down before he was overrun by cuddles, but smiled nonetheless as he wrapped his arms around Peter. Thor seemed to be rubbing Peter's feet now, and Tony was glad when some of the tension melted away from his kid's body.

Tony fussed over Peter's baby blanket for a few moments, making sure he was covered well enough. Peter just laid there, silent aside from the suckling of his pacifier. The silence was deafening, but thankfully Rhodey, Bruce and Thor got the memo and started up a conversation amongst themselves.

"How old are you feeling?" Tony asked after a short while. Peter shrugged, before he raised his index finger to indicate the number one. "That's alright, buddy."

Peter remained in silence for another ten or so minutes before he abruptly burst into tears, right there on Tony's lap. Tony's heart broke at the sound as he immediately comforted his child, wishing he could know what was going on inside of Peter's head. Whatever it was, it must have become too much, because this was the first time he'd cried since he woke up.

Bruce, Thor and Rhodey all sent sad glances to Peter, but otherwise didn't say anything.

"I know, I know." Tony murmured, wishing he could alter time so this never happened. "It's okay, kiddo."

"S'upid." Peter whimpered behind his pacifier, eyes squeezed shut. Tears still leaked out of them, which Tony wiped away. "S-S'upid baby."

"You're not a stupid baby." Tony replied immediately. "You could never be stupid, Peter."

"F-Flash." Tony's eyebrows drew together at the familiar name. Of course that little shit would say something. 

"Don't listen to him, Peter. There's nothing wrong with you, being Little is completely normal and healthy." There was nothing stopping him from going to Peter's school now. He was going to get that Flash kid expelled. 

"It'll be okay, baby. It won't be like this forever."

-

It took two days for Peter to return to his normal, bubbly self. Tony had him take time off of social media so he didn't see the articles floating around, along with what the kids from his own school was position about him. Tony made sure to document all the names and comments, since discriminating within the classifications was essentially against the law in some cases. It might not be now, but it was some excellent material to get some kids suspended and expelled.

May had been alerted about what had happened, and was coming over at the end of the day, since there was a gap in her work shifts. She had been properly horrified, and Tony had almost cried with her on the phone.

He had Pepper release a statement, and to the world, Peter Parker was officially Tony Stark's Little. Everyone knew Peter's name now and he hated it, but he knew they would find out eventually.

Peter was still Little when Tony went down to the school on Wednesday afternoon, and he had only gone when he was sure Peter was going to be okay with his Uncles. 

Tony had a great time chewing out the Principal, even though he'd been good to Peter before he had come to pick him up. It was more about the Principal's behaviour toward the mean comments being made online, along with Flash getting away with everything every single time a conflict arose.

So, in conclusion, Flash was suspended, sadly not expelled with a few other kids. Tony left the school feeling a bit better about the situation, even though nothing would really ever be okay with it. He was planning on taking Pepper's advice and take Peter to Malibu for a few days until things really cooled down, and so Peter could experience another location that wasn't the Compound.

He'd proposed the idea to May already and she had agreed immediately. When Tony mentioned it to Peter, he seemed excited about it too. So at least they had that going for them.

When Tony arrived back at the Compound, he felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He felt a little less stressed, but he was still stressed. Mostly about Peter's future.

He was happy to be bombarded with an armful of Peter when the lift doors open, so thankful to see the smile back on the boy's face. Peter squealed as Tony attacked his face with kisses, finding himself laughing along as he did so. The love he had for his kid was overwhelming as he carried him back into the living room, which was a complete mess of toys. Thor sat in the middle of it, a brighter smile on his face.

"Wow, you've been having fun with your Uncle Thor, haven't you?" Tony smiled as Peter bounced in his arms. The boy didn't reply, but it was clear that Tony was right. He was so glad to see that Peter was smiling again. "I bet you have. You didn't even miss your Daddy, did you?"

Peter gasped. "I missed Daddy!"

"I know, baby." Tony laughed and brought Peter over to Thor. Peter happily resumed whatever game the two had been playing, which turned out to be Legos. It was quite hilarious to see Thor, an all powerful God, playing with Legos. It made Tony grin. "What're you building?"

"Compound!" Peter exclaimed with excitement. 

"It looks great, Bambi. I'm so proud of you."

He wasn't just proud about the Legos. From the look that passed over Peter's face, he knew the message got across.

Tony was so proud of him.

-

The next day, Peter came out of his headspace. 

They sat on the couch together in silence, Peter typing away on his laptop doing an essay he hadn't gotten the opportunity to do over the last few days. Tony had made sure that any work Peter couldn't get done would have an extended due date and that he wouldn't get reprimanded by any of his teachers. From the tone Tony had used, the Principal hadn't hesitated to agree.

Now, Peter leant on him as he frantically typed out an English essay.

After a while, though, the frantic typing stopped. Tony saw that Peter was no longer looking at his screen, but more at Tony.

"What's up?" Tony asked. "Need help?"

Peter shook his head. "I'm... I'm scared of going back to school."

Tony's smile fell a little. "You don't have to go until you're ready."

"But I can't just... miss school." Peter mumbled, eyes returning to the computer screen. "Ned and MJ are probably worried about me."

"Have you texted them?"

"No. You told me not to look at my phone."

Tony frowned. "I didn't mean you can't text your friends, Pete. You were too Little to really use your phone, anyways. I'm sorry."

Peter shook his head again. "Don't worry, I know. I don't really want to text them. It's embarrassing."

"I've met those two kids, and I'm pretty sure they would never stop being friends with you just because of your classification. Especially Ned."

From the look on Peter's face, that had been exactly what he had been thinking. 

"I know. They probably hate me for keeping it a secret, though."

Tony shook his head. "They'll understand, Peter. You've got yourself some great friends there."

Peter smiled a little. "I know."

For the rest of the night, they talked through things. Tony even helped Peter with his essay. By the end of the night, they were both exhausted, and Tony wasn't all that surprised when Peter sheepishly asked if he could seep in Tony's bed. Even though it probably wasn't a good thing that Peter had become so dependent on him, Tony didn't hesitate to say yes. They had become dependent on each other, in a way.

Even when Peter wasn't in his headspace, he brought his baby blanket and bear to bed with him. It had been something he'd done ever since he was a baby, apparently, so it wasn't abnormal. It was just another part of who Peter is.

"I love you, kiddo." Tony said as they were settling in bed, arms wrapped around his kid. Peter was almost asleep already. "This will all pass. I promise. It always does."

"Love you too, Dad." Peter muttered with his eyes closed. "Thank you for everything."

Tony's eyes welled up a little from the sincerity in Peter's tone.

"Of course. Anything for my Spider-Baby."

**Author's Note:**

> feel free to comment any prompts! i'm open to doing any that ARE NOT st*rker
> 
> thanks for reading <3


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